President and first lady Melania Trump caught in awkward moment with Panamanian president

President Donald Trump welcomed Panama President Juan Carlos Varela to the White House on Monday and caught himself in an awkward exchange during their media availability.

The president asserted in the Oval Office photo-op that the U.S. did a "very good job" building the Panama Canal -- and President Varela was ready with a quip.

Photos from the meeting:

8PHOTOS

President Trump meets with President of Panama

See Gallery

President Trump meets with President of Panama

U.S. President Donald Trump shakes hands with Juan Carlos Varela, Panama's president, left, during a meeting in the Oval Office at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., on Monday, June 19, 2017. The U.S. is Panama's number one source of imports, accounting for 17 percent or $4.68 billion of the country's total imports, according to Massachusetts Institute of Technology's Observatory of Economic Complexity. Photographer: Molly Riley/Pool via Bloomberg

WASHINGTON, DC - JUNE 19: President Donald Trump meets with Panama's President Juan Carlos Varela in the Oval Office, with first lady Melania Trump, at the White House on June 19, 2017 in Washington, DC. According to the White House, the two presidents will talk about how to curb 'transnational organized crime, illegal migration, and illicit substances' and the continued political and economic instability in Venezuela. (Photo by Molly Riley- Pool/Getty Images)

U.S. President Donald Trump (R) speaks to Panama's President Juan Carlos Varela during a meeting in the Oval Office at the White House in Washington, U.S. June 19, 2017. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst

US President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump greet Panamanian President Juan Carlos Varela and his wife Lorena Castillo at the White House in Washington, DC, on June 19, 2017. / AFP PHOTO / NICHOLAS KAMM (Photo credit should read NICHOLAS KAMM/AFP/Getty Images)

US President Donald Trump and Panamanian President Juan Carlos Varela walk through the colonnade at the White House in Washington, DC, on June 19, 2017. / AFP PHOTO / NICHOLAS KAMM (Photo credit should read NICHOLAS KAMM/AFP/Getty Images)

US President Donald Trump and Panamanian President Juan Carlos Varela walk through the colonnade at the White House in Washington, DC, on June 19, 2017. / AFP PHOTO / NICHOLAS KAMM (Photo credit should read NICHOLAS KAMM/AFP/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON, DC - JUNE 19: Lorena Castillo, Panama's President Juan Carlos Varela's wife, and first lady Melanie Trump stand outside the Oval Office after the arrival of President Varela and Lorena Castillo, at the White House on June 19, 2017 in Washington, DC. According to the White House, the two presidents will talk about how to curb 'transnational organized crime, illegal migration, and illicit substances' and the continued political and economic instability in Venezuela. (Photo by Molly Riley- Pool/Getty Images)

Up Next

See Gallery

Discover More Like This

HIDE CAPTION

SHOW CAPTION

of

SEE ALL

BACK TO SLIDE

"The Panama Canal is doing quite well. I think we did a good job building it, right?" Trump asked. "Very good job."

"Yeah, 100 years ago," Varela quickly responded, which some saw as a dig.

But Varela did speak warmly about the relationship between the United States and Panama.

"I would like to thank President Trump and his wife for receiving us today at the White House," he said. "It's an honor for me to be here. There's a long friendship between Panama and the United States, and we face the same challenges in the region. So the idea of this visit is to work closely together to face the same challenges that we have in the region of Central America and Latin America and in our continent."